The Democratic Kurdistan Community Congress in Europe (KCDK-E) declared 12 November a "national strike day against chemical weapons use" to protest the silence of the Organisation for the Prevention of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), the European Union (EU), the United Nations, NATO and international powers.

As part of the protests, a central rally is taking place in the German city of Düsseldorf today with the participation of thousands of people to denounce the employment of chemical weapons and displaying banners with the images of 17 guerrillas who have been killed in the latest chemical attacks by the Turkish army in the guerilla areas in northern Iraq.

Following the call of the Kurdish Women’s Movement in France (TJK-F), the Democratic Kurdish Council in France (CDK-F) and Revolutionary Youth Movement (TCŞ), Kurdish tradespeople in southern France have taken down the shutters today and exposed Turkish war crimes in Kurdistan with banners hung on their workplaces.

While shops remained closed, Kurds and their friends rushed to Canebiere Square in Marseille to join a demonstration on the national strike day against chemical weapons use.